Masquerade
by BonitaBreezy
Summary: Sora is in a funk on Valentine's Day. Roxas and Axel, determined to cheer him up, force him to a masquerade ball. There, Sora meets the perfect stranger. Will they ever meet again? SoRiku


A/N: Overdone? Probably. Lots of fun to write and read? Absolutely! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: If I owned it, would I be here?

If there is one thing to be said about Valentine's Day, it is that the holiday, while joyful for some, can be spiteful for others. Sora Hikari, who was usually quite supportive of things like love and holidays, didn't enjoy Valentine's Day in the least. The boisterous brunet insisted it was because he didn't like society taking something as pure as love and turning it into their newest sales quotient. Roxas, Sora's twin brother, thought Sora disliked the holiday because he'd never been part of a couple when the date came around.

Now, Roxas wasn't normally one who meddled in other people's affairs, but he figured that helping his other half out couldn't be too much of a sin. He figured his brother deserved to have some fun and maybe find the pleasurable side of Valentine's Day. As out of character as it was for the blonde, he called up his deviously manipulative boyfriend and set up a plan.

Axel, of course, had had just the answer Roxas was looking for. A dance club called Oblivion would be holding a costume party the night before the holiday. The idea was that anyone eighteen or over could get in and they would be provided with a colored ribbon to tie somewhere visible on their person. Red meant they were taken, white meant gay, and pink meant straight.

It was a simple enough procedure. They would force Sora to come with them and hopefully, someone would catch his interest. It would work or it wouldn't but either way, Roxas was confident that Sora would have fun and he wouldn't be home alone.

This, of course, is how Sora Hikari came to find himself standing in front of a mirror, staring incredulously at the cat staring back at him. How Roxas had decided that Sora would make a wonderful feline was far beyond the brunet, but he had to admit it wasn't so bad. He'd been allowed to wear jeans and a simple, black, long sleeved t-shirt. A pair of brown cat ears-perfectly matching his hair-poked up from said tresses. A tail protruded from somewhere around the seat of his pants, exactly where, Sora wasn't sure. Roxas had gone as far as to poke cat-eye contacts into Sora's eyes, making his pupil a long slit in the center of his eye, though keeping the same blue color. Looking at them, he decided that he might just wear them again after the night was over. Rikku, a girl who lived in the apartment next door to them, had attacked him with make-up and a hair-straightener. He had been extremely surprised when his usually spiky tresses had been laid flat, coming down just past his chin. He was actually quite surprised to see she hadn't gone for the generic whiskers and pink nose look. Instead, she'd lined his eyes with dark kohl, making his eyes pop even more. He'd expected it to take forever, but she dabbed a bit of something on his lips, stood back, nodded at her work, and left. Looking at himself, he realized that he looked much like something out of an anime rather then an actual cat. Still, he had to admit, he didn't look bad. Not bad at all.

Roxas knocked on the door and pushed it open before waiting for a reply. Sora looked at his brother and laughed out loud. The blonde grinned in response, spreading out his arms and doing a 360 turn. Roxas was dressed in camouflage BDU's with shiny black boots on his feet and a cap pulled low over his hair.

"Is that…?" Sora reached out and grabbed his brother's arm, looking at the sleeve for a long moment before bursting into laughter again. In place of where the American flag would usually preside was a rainbow flag.

"Where did you get this?" Sora demanded, amazed at his brother's daring.

"It was Axel's idea," Roxas admitted. "Reno got us on to Fort Shinra using his military ID and I bought them at the BX. I just went to a novelty shop for the flag and sewed it on. Easy enough." He shrugged modestly.

Sora was fascinated to see that their last name was even embroidered on the front.

"You need to wear that everywhere now, you know that, right?" the brunet said seriously. Roxas laughed and nodded.

"Yeah, I know. You look great, by the way. Those eyes are just so cool." Sora grinned in response, unable to reply before the front door opened and Axel came in, looking like he was ready to raise hell.

The twins took one look at him and were pushed into hysterics. The redhead-who had quite the affinity for fire-was dressed as a fireman. He wore the fireman's fire-proof pants in yellow, held up with red suspenders. A fire hat sat on his head, weighing down his normally wild red spikes. The only part of the uniform he wasn't wearing was the jacket, and that was only so everyone could see the best part of the outfit. The redheaded man wore a white t-shirt with a picture of a fire extinguisher and the phrase, "I put out" in red letters across his chest.

"Ax, you look great!" Roxas finally exclaimed as he got around his laughter. "I love it!" Axel waggled his eyebrows at his blonde boyfriend before sweeping in for a quick kiss.

"You look pretty hot yourself, Roxy. I gotta say, I love a man in uniform." Roxas snorted and rolled his eyes before turning back to Sora.

"You ready to go?" The brunet nodded, grabbing his jacket in preparation for the bone-deep cold that was sure to be outside.

"I like your eyes, Sora," Axel said as they trooped downstairs. "Very cool, in a freaky sort of way."

"Thanks," Sora said, lips lifting into a smile. "I think I might wear them after this."

"You definitely should," Axel agreed, pulling his keys from his pocket and unlocking his car from across the lot as they exited the front door of the twins' apartment building.

"So, I feel like I have to ask, why are you two dragging me along, anyway?" Sora asked. "I mean, I don't want to be in the way when you two are trying to be together."

"No problem, Sora! We like having you around sometimes. Besides, it'll be such a big affair we couldn't get alone time if we tried," Axel said, waving a hand dismissively.

"And maybe you'll meet someone more interesting to talk to," Roxas suggested, staring out the window. Sora scowled slightly as he realized exactly what his friends were doing.

"You're trying to set me up with someone!" He exclaimed.

"No!" Roxas exclaimed, whipping around in his seat to look at his brother earnestly. "We're not, I swear. True, we're hoping that you might meet someone, but we have no one in particular in mind!"

Sora glanced between his brother's serious face and Axel's green eyes, watching him in the rearview mirror. The brunet let out a sigh and nodded.

"Yeah, all right, I believe you. But dammit, Roxas, if you have anything other then this planned, I am going to kill you."

Roxas turned back around to face forward, one hand reaching out and taking Axel's lacing their fingers together over the center console.

"Yeah, all right," he agreed. Sora watched in a bit of envy as Axel lifted their connected hands and pressed a kiss against Roxas' fingers.

He didn't necessarily covet Axel or Roxas, more like he was jealous of what they had. He'd been in relationships before, but none of them had ever been like what Roxas and Axel had. That was what he envied. Axel pulled into a parking space in the middle of nowhere.

"Come on, we'll have to walk from here. There's no way we're going to find parking within four blocks of the place."

So they trekked across the city, breath puffing in the cold air in front of them. By the time they reached the front of the club, Sora was certain that he had developed a case of frost bite on his fingertips. He let out a groan when he saw the line of people trailing around a corner.

"No problem, Sora," Axel grinned confidently, winking at him. "I've got connections here." The redhead strode to the head of the line, the twins following behind him like a shadow. Two huge men were standing at the club's entrance, obviously bouncers. One had cornrows tied up into a ponytail and the other had a large scar across one cheek and an eye patch.

"Xiggy, Xaldin, How's it going?" Axel greeted easily. The pair stared at him for a long moment as if deliberating whether to feed him his own spine before the one with the eye patch grinned.

"Axel! How's it going?"

"It's good, it's good," Axel assured the man, giving him a quick half-hug. "But we've got a bit of a situation here. We want inside, the line is longer then hell, and it's cold as shit out here. Think you can help me out?" Xaldin grinned and shook his head.

"Yeah, yeah, all right. Get in here." He moved the rope aside, allowing them in, much to the displeasure of the people outside. Inside was dark with flashing lights and loud music.

A big man with short reddish-brown hair converged upon them with what appeared to be ribbons in his hand.

"What color?" he shouted over the music. Sora stared in confusion while Roxas selected two red ribbons and one white. He took the length of white ribbon and tied it around Sora's neck like a choker, startling the brunet in the slightest.

"What's this for?" Sora demanded, fingering the satiny ribbon.

"It lets people know you're gay!" Roxas explained shortly, having Axel tie his ribbon around his upper arm, and then helping the redhead tie his own around his wrist. Sora didn't have enough time to ask why people needed to know before Axel whisked the blonde off into the crowed, presumably to dance. Sora stood there awkwardly for a few minutes before deciding he should probably get away from the door. He pushed his way through the convulsing crowd toward the bar. He ordered a beer and turned to watch people interact. He enjoyed people watching, especially in places where others thought no one else was watching. He was took his beer, slapped down some money, and headed over so he could stand against a wall and watch. He felt slightly awkward, constantly asking himself why he had agreed to this. He was pretty bored and no one seemed to notice him.

After about an hour and a half, he was weighing the option of calling a cab to take him home. Roxas would be a bit upset, but Sora was getting to the point where he was fed up with standing around. He was checking the battery on his cell phone when a voice seemingly directed at him spoke up.

"You know, the wall won't fall over if you stop leaning against it." Sora looked up to see the most breathtaking man he'd ever set eyes upon.

The very first thing Sora noticed was the beautiful turquoise of his eyes, followed soon thereafter by his silver hair. It was a color Sora had never seen before and he had to assume it wasn't the man's natural color. Probably a wig. Whatever it was, it was tied back out of his face. He wore what looked like a ship captain's uniform from the 1700s. Puffy white sleeves came out from under a green vest, both of which were tucked into nicely fitting pants, ending just below his knees with long white socks. A sword sat at his waist, though Sora was pretty sure he wouldn't have been allowed to take it in if it were real.

"I'm Riku," the man yelled over the music.

"Sora!" The brunet replied, eyes scanning for a ribbon. He couldn't seem to find one, though. He didn't know what the other colors meant, but he knew white meant gay. He assumed that red meant they were taken, considering Roxas and Axel had both donned one.

"Any particular reason you got all dressed up just to lean against the wall all night?" Riku asked, leaning his head closer so he wouldn't have to yell so loud. As he did this, his braided hair fell over his shoulder and Sora's heart seized up. A white ribbon was tied around the end of the braid, keeping his hair in place.

"I guess no one has taken interest in me yet," Sora replied, raising his eyebrows slightly. A smirk crossed Riku's face and he leaned even closer.

"Would you dance with me, Sora?"

"Uh…" Sora muttered, feeling his cheeks heat up just in the slightest.

"I'm not that great of a dancer…"

"No problem," Riku grinned. "I'll help you out." Not waiting for a reply, the silver-haired beauty grabbed Sora's hand and dragged him out into the middle of the meshing bodies.

Riku rested his hands on Sora's hips and started moving, his hands guiding Sora to the beat. The brunet followed the best that he could, spurred by Riku's encouraging words whispered into his ear.

"See? It's not so hard, is it?" he asked. Sora shook his head, admitting to the fact that it really wasn't all that hard.

Before long, Sora managed to pick up different beats and he figure out how to move. It became really fun then, dancing with Riku. He found it interesting that they kept getting closer and closer together until one body was pressed against another. Hours passed and they'd stop every once in a while to get a drink and relax, but the pair would always return to the dance floor together.

As the night began to wind down and more and more people left, the lights started dimming and the dance music made way for slower, more intimate beats. Riku smirked and switched their position, moving one arm around Sora's waist and taking the brunet's hand with the other.

"R-Riku…I can't…" he stuttered, trying to pull from the other man's grasp.

"You said that earlier, but really, So, you're a natural." Sora almost melted into a pile of goo at Riku's sexy yet earnest smile and the nickname. Feeling a bit more confident, Sora allowed Riku to lead them into a dance. Due to the brunet's insecurity, they stuck to circles at first, but Riku slowly worked them into something a little more complicated. Sora was really surprised when he realized that he was following the steps without killing himself or stepping all over Riku. He let out a little laugh and really got into it. He didn't notice that people had stopped their own dancing to watch the pair. He didn't notice Roxas and Axel standing nearby, watching them with satisfied smirks. What he did notice was the look on Riku's face as his partner leaned down to kiss him. Having spent the entire night dancing with him, Sora could almost guess the way Riku was going to move, and he reacted in kind. Their lips were a fraction of an inch away from each other when Riku pulled away at the sound of his name, sparing Sora an apologetic look before they were converged upon by a silver-haired male and a blonde. The blonde looked panicked as he grabbed Riku's arm, his eyes wide and mouth flopping uselessly.

"What?" Riku hissed. "I'm a bit busy here, in case you didn't notice."

"Oh, we noticed," The blonde interjected, regaining use of his voice.

"We're sorry, Riku, but we've got to go," the other spoke up. "They're going to shut down the dorm in ten minutes and you drove, so we need to go." Each one seized his arm and began pulling him away.

"Hey, wait!" Riku tried to protest, to no avail. He shot Sora one last remorseful look before turning and leaving with his friends. The brunet was completely still, staring after the trio in confusion long after they'd disappeared. When it finally hit him what had happened, he rolled his eyes and shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans. Life seemed to have returned to the room and Axel and Roxas were heading toward him, both looking a bit concerned.

"Sora?" Roxas spoke tentatively, touching his brother's arm.

"I'm gonna head home, Rox," was Sora's answer.

"Who was that?" Roxas asked.

"Riku. His name was Riku."

"And?" Axel pressed.

"That's it. That's all I know," Sora answered, curious about the strange pressure overtaking his chest. "I'm going home. Enjoy the rest of your night. Should I leave the door unlocked?"

"Hold on, we'll come with you," Roxas offered, grabbing Axel hand in preparation to drag the redhead along if he needed to.

"No," Sora shook his head. "You guys stay out, have fun. I don't want to be a bother. Besides," he cut his twin off as he opened his mouth to argue, "I want to be alone for a while."

"Oh…" Roxas answered slowly, biting his lip as he exchanged a look with Axel. Sora had always been slightly suspicious, wondering whether the two could read each other's minds. It sure seemed like it sometimes. "All right. You'll get a cab, though, won't you?"

"Yeah, yeah," Sora said, waving a hand dismissively. "Should I leave the door unlocked or not?"

"No," Roxas sighed, apparently admitting defeat. "I'll stay at Axel's tonight."

Axel snorted and rolled his eyes. "I love how you just invite yourself over, Roxy."

The blonde's eyebrows shot up and he turned to look up at his boyfriend. "Are you going to tell me I can't?" he asked.

"Of course not. You know I can't deny you. Besides, why the hell would I ever say no to waking up next to you?" the redhead asked. The line would have seemed cheesy if Axel hadn't been completely serious when he said it.

Roxas sent him a sunny smile. "Why should I bother asking then?"

Sora chose that moment to make his escape. He slipped into the crowd and headed toward the front doors, pretending he couldn't hear Roxas calling behind him.

The apartment was, unsurprisingly, completely quiet when he got home. He threw his keys on the kitchen counter, locked the door and headed off to bed. The numbers on his alarm clock glowed 2:30 at him in neon green letters. Sora decided to forgo a shower, kicked off his shoes and climbed into bed. As he was falling asleep, all he could think about was that near kiss with an almost perfect stranger. He wished they hadn't been interrupted.

When Sora woke up around noon the next day, Roxas still wasn't home. The brunet hadn't really expected him to be, considering the blonde was notorious for sleeping about eleven hours a night, at least. He wouldn't have been too surprised if Roxas never came home. So much of his stuff was at Axel's house, he might as well have lived there.

The brunet took a shower to wash the makeup from his face and return his hair to its normal gravity defiance. After his shower, he suddenly realized that he had a huge desire to bake. So bake he did.

Sora spent hours in the kitchen and, by the time his best friend Kairi let herself through the front door, he had three different kinds of cookies, brownies, and a cake. The redheaded girl stopped short at the sight of the kitchen. While Sora was a neat cook, the amount of sweets flooding the counters was enough to stop anyone in their tracks.

"Hi, Kairi!" Sora greeted as she grabbed an oatmeal cookie from the nearest plate and took a bite. "Good, aren't they?" She hummed appreciatively and swallowed.

"All right, Sora, what's wrong?" she asked. The brunet froze in his movements of washing out the mixing bowl, shoulders tensing slightly.

"What do you mean?" he asked when he was finally able to get his voice under control.

"You're baking," Kairi said flatly in a no-nonsense voice. Sora became increasingly interested in washing the bowl, though it was already quite clean.

"So what? I felt like baking…"

"You only bake when you're upset, Sora. I know you, so stop trying to lie to me. You're hurting my feelings." Ooh. Kairi knew just want buttons to push with him. He dropped the bowl into the sink and turned off the water, grabbing a dish towel to dry his hands. Sora turned his back to the sink and leaned against the counter, staring at his best friend of ten years.

"What's wrong, Sora?" she asked again. Sora sighed and looked down at his feet, pouting just in the slightest as he started to tell his story. He reported how they'd met and how they'd danced together all night. Kairi listened with rapt, supportive attention.

"And then, Kairi, he was going to kiss me! I know he was! He leaned in and I swear I thought I might have a heart attack and we were just about to touch and these friends of him come rushing up and _interrupt_!" He said 'interrupt' as if it were a dirty cuss word. "And he left with them! Oh, god, Kairi, he left and he didn't even say another word! I don't know anything about him, either, so it's almost like all that chemistry between us is going to waste! Oh, Kairi, I almost feel like, if we'd have had a chance to actually know each other, we'd be perfect together! And I know that sounds really weird and needy, but that's really how I feel. And now I feel even worse about Valentine's Day then before. I know Roxas and Axel were trying to do something nice for me, but it just sucks because they're together and I'm here all alone with my mixer and enough sweets to feed an army…"

Kairi looked at him sympathetically, but smiled just in the slightest. "Well, I'm here, aren't I?"

Sora paused in his rant and stared at the girl for a long moment. A smile slowly built over his face until he was full out grinning. "You are here, aren't you? You always know how to make me feel better. I love you, Kairi!" Sora hugged the redheaded girl tightly, suddenly feeling better. He was still a bit bummed, but nowhere near as badly as he had been.

"Hey, Sora, I have an idea," Kairi said after a moment. "Why don't you come out with me tonight? My cousin and I have this arrangement every Valentine's Day. If we're both single, we go out to dinner together so we don't feel quite so pathetic. Half the time we get mistaken for a couple anyway."

Sora pulled away, staring at his friend with wide eyes. He suddenly shook his head quickly.

"Ah, no, Kairi. I don't want to ruin your night with your cousin. You guys have a tradition and I don't want to get in the way of that…"

Kairi laughed and pulled out her cell phone. "I'm taking you with me whether you want to go or not," she said bluntly. "But if it will make you feel better, I'll call him and ask if he minds." Sora nodded, feeling almost numb as Kairi pressed a button and held the phone to her ear. He wasn't quite sure how to feel. Kairi was being so nice to him, letting him tag along. She was a great friend and he was so happy that she was his best friend and no one else's. It made him feel almost special, in a way.

"Hi, dearest cousin!" Kairi greeted into the phone happily. "No, I'm not canceling on you…" her face set in a concerned expression. "Ah, you sound really down, are you okay? Yeah…yeah, okay, I get it. Hey, is it all right if I bring a friend? Yeah, he's my gay lover." Kairi laughed out loud and shook her head. "No, he's just my bestest friend in the whole wide universe and he's pathetic like us." She laughed again. "Great! I knew you wouldn't mind. See you tonight!"

"I resent that 'pathetic' statement," Sora informed the girl with a slight pout as she slipped her phone back into her pocket. Kairi shrugged, apparently unaffected by the look. Roxas burst through the door a few minutes later, looking a little out of breath and harassed.

"Kairi!" he cried. "Oh, thank god you're here! Listen, I need your help finding something to wear for my date tonight…"

Sora snorted. "Roxas, Axel would think you were sexy if you wore a burlap sack…"

"Please Kairi!" The redheaded girl nodded, blinking rapidly.

"Sure, Roxas. Of course I'll help. Go hop in the shower while Sora and I have a look."

Roxas seemed to calm infinitely at the assurance that Kairi would help. Then he paused and frowned, looking around the kitchen.

"What's wrong, Sora?" The brunet blinked and then frowned, throwing his hands into the air.

"Why do you all think something's wrong with me?" he cried.

"You're baking," Roxas said bluntly. "You only bake when something is wrong." Kairi shot him a look that clearly said, 'I told you so' before turning to Roxas. "No problem, Roxas, I've got it all taken care of all ready," she assured him. "Go get in the shower." The blonde cast them a suspicious look before obediently going to get in the shower.

"Come on, lets go find your brother something to wear," Kairi sighed. Sora led her to Roxas' room, pushing open the closet door and staring at the selections. It was mostly blacks, whites, and red, true to Roxas' form. Sora sat on the blonde's bed, watching as Kairi started pushing through the clothes with a serious look on her face. She let out a cry of triumph a few minutes later, pulling out a pair of jeans that Sora was infinitely surprised Roxas even owned. They looked way tighter then anything Roxas would even consider wearing. Still, they were in his closet, so whose else would they be? They were too short to belong to Axel.

Kairi tossed the jeans to Sora, who folded them up and set them on the bed next to him. He'd barely had time to finish before Kairi tossed a shirt at him. The shirt effectively landed on his face, making him sputter indignantly.

"Oops! Sorry, Sora!" Kairi cried as he fought to get the thing off his head. He finally pulled it off and was surprised to see Kairi pulling a pair of black work boots from the back recesses of Roxas' closet. Sora hadn't even been aware that Roxas owned those. This was saying something, considering the brothers gave no second thought to borrowing each others clothing whenever they felt the desire. The best part about having a twin; they had a double-sized wardrobe because if it fit one of them, it would fit the other.

The shirt that had attacked Sora's head was-big surprise-black and a button down. It was simple, yet Sora knew Roxas would look great in it. He worked simple very, very well. Kairi started poking through Roxas' top drawer where he kept all sorts of jewelry. She pulled out a silver chain and tossed it on top of the shirt Sora had just folded before, finally, pulling out a black leather belt with a decent sized belt buckle in the shape of an X. It was a good thing Roxas was in such good shape, Sora thought, or otherwise the points of the buckle would dig into his stomach. As Kairi set the last accessory down, Sora grinned at her teasingly.

"Jeez, Kairi, are you gonna pick out his underwear, too?"

"No need," Kairi shrugged, pointing at Roxas who had just entered the room, blonde spikes wet, dressed in only a pair of boxers and a black beater. Kairi had been around so long, neither of them really cared if she saw them in any state of undress. She'd seen it all anyway.

"Kairi, you are a life saver," Roxas sighed, pulling on the selected clothes. He made a face at the pants, but dutifully pulled them on. The last time one of them had asked Kairi for fashion advice and then criticized her choice, things had gotten ugly. Neither of them had any desire for a repeat performance. "Really, if I weren't gay, I might be in love with you."

"No you wouldn't," Kairi answered cheerfully. Roxas thought about it for a moment before nodding his agreement.

"Yeah, you're right. You're too much like family." He reached down to grab the boots before blinking at them stupidly.

"I didn't even know I had these," he muttered before pulling them on. The front door opened and Axel's voice reached their ears. "Hey, Roxy? Are you ready?" Roxas jumped off the bed and began looping the belt around his hips, buckling it in place as Axel came through the door. The redhead was wearing dark blue jeans and a Guns N' Roses t-shirt-he often bragged about being named after Axl Rose-with a black sports jacket over it. On his feet were black converse. Sora gave him a quick once over, taking note of how well Axel pulled the look off. Roxas was practically salivating and Axel looked pleased, obviously aware of the effect he was having on his boyfriend.

"Hold on," Kairi said, coming at Roxas with what looked like a black pencil in her hand. "He'll be ready in just a second, Axel." Sora recognized it as a stick of eyeliner, having been subjected to the stuff just the night before. Roxas didn't fight as Kairi carefully applied it, making his eyes pop brilliantly.

"Very sexy, Rox," Axel grinned as Kairi deemed Roxas presentable.

"Nowhere near as good as you," Roxas breathed, eyeing the redhead hungrily. "Maybe we should stay in tonight…"

"No!" Kairi cried, stamping her foot for effect. The pair looked at her, snapped from their lustful reveries at the anger in the girl's voice. "I worked too hard on you for it to go to waste. You will go out and you will be the sexiest god damn people in the place, do you hear me?" Axel took a cautious step backwards and Roxas nodded, eyes wide.

"Um…sure thing," he answered slowly. "Sorry." The she-devil that was Kairi melted away and the angel returned, smiling at them.

"Great! Have fun, you two! Happy Valentine's Day!" The two returned the sentiment, making their escape as if the devil were on their heels. Sora snorted and shook his head in amusement.

"I think you scared them a bit, Kai," he said with a grin. Kairi shrugged, not looking remorseful at all.

"I hope they were scared. It'll teach them, won't it? Now go get dressed, we have to leave soon."

Sora stared down at him jeans and t-shirt, wondering how that didn't qualify as dressed.

Kairi sighed and rolled her eyes. "Put on those jeans with the rips in the knees and that black t-shirt. You know, the snuggly tight one with the ribs?" Sora nodded to show that he understood and started toward his room so he could redress himself, adding his cat-eye contacts for himself. After he was dressed to Kairi's requirements, he went out in the hall to find that Kairi apparently had dipped into her stash of clothes that she kept in the closet. She'd changed from her pink t-shirt to a white flowing halter top and blue jeans with flowers embroidered up the side.

"Great, lets go!" she cried, pulling on her pink coat and throwing Sora's jacket at him.

They took Kairi's car to a small Italian place, the parking lot packed. Sora followed her inside, blanching slightly at the romantic atmosphere. The lights were all dimmed and there was a candle in the center of each table. Couples were already there, leaning over the tables and talking quietly. The loudest noise around them was the clink of silverware.

"Hi," Kairi greeted with a smile. "We have a reservation, under Silver?" The woman scanned the list before frowning.

"A reservation for three?" she asked, as if imploring Kairi to tell her she was wrong.

"Yes," Kairi answered.

"Well, all right, then."

"Our third will should be here soon," Kairi informed her as they were led toward a table. The table was farther in the back, close to the kitchen doors. Sora assumed it was because he had been added last minute. He felt a bit guilty about it before he realized it was probably for the best. Why not let the actual couples have a nice night away from the kitchen doors?

"So, what do you think?" Kairi asked. "Nice place, huh?"

Sora nodded his agreement, slightly aghast at _how_ nice the place was. He hadn't expected anything like this when Kairi had said the dinner was with her cousin. They chatted, trying to keep their voices down as to not ruin the atmosphere for other people.

"By the way, Sora, I really like those contacts," Kairi said with a grin. "They're kinda sexy in a fierce sort of way."

"Thanks," Sora grinned. "I like them a lot myself." He lifted his glass to his lips to take a drink and Kairi squealed in excitement, waving her hand over her head. Sora assumed this meant her cousin had arrived. He took one last drink and lifted his head, only to be met by a face he never thought he'd see again. He choked on his soda and ducked his head back down, coughing violently. Kairi patted his back sympathetically and Riku took his seat at the table, not making any acknowledgment that he'd ever seen Sora before in his life.

The brunet finished his coughing fit and took another drink to sooth his throat before looking at Riku. The silver-haired man was studying his menu, eyes never deterring from the page in front of him. Sora was suddenly feeling very foolish and wishing that he'd have stayed home.

"Riku, you realize that you're being rude, right?" Kairi rolled her eyes, looking pointedly at Riku, who was, apparently, her cousin. He set his menu down and looked at her as if he didn't get what she was talking about before jumping as if she'd kicked him. Which, knowing Kairi, wasn't that much of a stretch. He glared at her and she nodded her head almost imperceptibly at Sora. Riku stared at her for a moment longer before realizing his blunder.

"Oh!" he said. "I'm sorry, I'm…"

"Riku. I know," Sora said, finally looking him in the eyes. He looked vaguely confused before his eyes stopped flicking around Sora's face and focused on his eyes. And then he went very, very still, his face filling with something akin to amazement.

"Sora?" he said, slowly. "Sora, is that you?" Sora only nodded, pouting slightly. "Oh my god! I…well, I didn't recognize you with your hair like that. But I could never forget those eyes."

Kairi was looking back and forth suspiciously between the two, who were studiously ignoring her.

"I thought you were just being a jerk," Sora admitted. "I mean after last night I thought that maybe…but maybe I was imagining that…?"

"No, you weren't imagining anything…"

"Wait a minute!" Kairi cried. "You were the guy from the club that had Sora baking for six hours straight?" Kairi demanded, pointing an accusatory finger at Riku.

"Um…" Riku said, apparently confused by the baking bit. "I did meet Sora at the club…?"

"Riku is your 'perfect' guy?" she demanded of Sora. The brunet nodded. All three stared at each other for a long while before Kairi stood up. The two males flinched, wondering if the redhead was about to go she-devil on them. Instead, Kairi grinned.

"Oh, this is wonderful!" she exclaimed. "I can't believe it, this has to be fate! Or the work of Saint Valentine!" The boys glanced at each other as if worried for the girl's health, before she yanked her jacket off the back of her chair.

"Wait, where are you going?" Sora squawked nervously.

"I'm leaving you two alone, of course!" Kairi cried. "It's obvious that you should be on a date today anyway. I'll just go to Naminé's house. We'll have a girl's night."

"But…" Sora tried to stall her, but she was already walking away, waving over her shoulder. He slumped slightly, turning to smile nervously at Riku. The silver-haired male-and Sora was supremely shocked to see that it was his actual hair color-grinned back, looking a bit like he'd just won the lottery.

"You can always depend on her to make herself scarce," he said. Sora couldn't come up with a reply before Riku leaned across the table and kissed him. It was sweet and chaste and over all too soon.

"I just wanted to do that," Riku shrugged. "I was a bit upset we didn't get the chance to last night." Sora nodded numbly.

They were quiet for a few minutes, though it wasn't really awkward. More like it was hard to talk when one was worrying about disturbing other people's meals. Finally, though, Riku pushed his chair back and stood up, offering his hand to Sora.

"You want to get out of here?" he asked. "We can go somewhere where we can talk without feeling like criminals." Sora laughed and nodded, taking the other male's quite larger hand. Together, they left the restaurant, in search of a place where they could just be. They ended up just driving around in Riku's car, talking about anything that came to mind. When it got to be about three in the morning, they came to a stop outside of Sora's apartment building. The brunet paused for only a moment before kissing Riku, a little longer, a little sweeter, then they had in the restaurant.

"I'm glad we found each other again," Sora whispered, and Riku nodded his agreement.

"I'll call you later," he promised.

As Sora got out of the car and walked toward his building, he couldn't stop the stupid smile spreading over his lips. He suddenly understood what the magic of Valentine's Day was and he had a feeling that as long as Riku was around, that understanding would just get stronger and stronger.

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A/N: So? Soooo? Didja like it? I did. Though it was a monster to write, I just kept getting stuck. By the way, Axel's costume? I totally stole that from this kid at my school. He wears it every year on Halloween and I've yet to stop thinking that it is funny. Review, please!

P.S. Beautiful Soul just came on the radio and I was like…Jesse McCartney=Roxas. Yay! And it's sad because I don't even like that song. In fact, I hate it. But I listened to the whole things because that is what Kingdom Hearts does to me.


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